I went a week without Android Wear and it really sucked

So, I've been seeing a lot of discussion from folks through the blogosphere talking about the recent introduction of the new Apple Watch and how it's a moot point because wearables are dead.

Then there are my own issues I'm having with the recent update for my 360 Sport getting Android Wear 2.0, and even suffering from the horrendous UI of my favourite watch face (so hard having to pour over finding a replacement) that I have people asking "yeah, but why is it worth it? I don't think I ever could want that".

True, using a wearable isn't for everybody. But when I think of the struggles I have or how it might work for someone else, I reflect on the week that I went without my watch and what a pain in the ass it really was.

Maybe, it was mostly because I had gotten used to something and it was gone. Sure. But, I think that most people could find using an Android Wear watch a real benefit more than 'just another thing'. Let me give you my thoughts.

I'm going to have to do a post just on Android Wear 2.0 and my frustrations, but even still... it's not something I'd go without anymore.

for all its imperfections, I still love my Moto 360 Sport

So, it was during a week I was out of town for a work course and I had a review of the TomTom Touch. I wanted to give it the proper feel and so shelved the 360 Sport for the week.

Here's what I missed out on during that week, and what made me immediately put it back on as soon as I could

I actually missed out on having something on my wrist

Maybe it's just I'm a creature of routine, but that ritual of putting the watch on in the morning and off at night is something I missed for sure. Definitely, I could have switched to another wearable to negate this issue. But I also liked the size of the watch versus just a fitness band.

Having a quick glance for my weather

My favourite watch face is InstaWeather for Android Wear. I use the Hourly Forecast option and then it gives me a glance of not only what the weather is right now, but what it will be. This is great because especially in the north, the weather seems to change hourly. If I see in the morning it looks great, but should my son have a rain jacket? So handy.

Without the watch, I couldn't see the weather; I'd have to grab my phone out of my pocket, turn it on and see the weather widget like some sort of chump.

Quickly dismissing notifications

my phone gets lots of notifications ... every time, like Pavlov's dogs, I grab my phone to check it. I keep the notifications off the lockscreen for privacy concerns, so I have to unlock the device to see them. Having Android Wear is a great time saver for me, let alone the fact that it allows me to stay productive by not disrupting my concentration for too long

with the watch I can look at my phone, quickly ignore or delete or even respond ... all without touching my phone. Especially where my boss likes to not see cellphones during any meetings, it's very handy to attend to my normal activity without getting in trouble

Really tracking my runs

I run sometimes now, and I hate having to bring my phone with me. But if I use some other fitness band or watch I wouldn't get full details like GPS or have my music ... Sure, there is this ... but then all I would get would be music and GPS data, but none of the other accoutrements of Android Wear (it's about getting as much out of everything as I can get, I may never get everything I want, but what gets me the most in one method over others).